Ciao amico mio

Mario was my first Boss when I began my career at Polaroid Italy, back in the early 90s. He taught me almost everything I know from a business perspective: what I have become is a result of his patience and constant coaching. Then, over the years, even though he loved to say "remember that I will always be your boss", Mario became a dear friend and a precious mentor, someone I would always turn to when I needed advice. Thank you Mario for your friendship, for your energy and passion and the love you always showed for Italy and your Italian friends. Your will always be in our hearts.

Nicola

"Una volta che avrete imparato a Volare, camminerete sulla terra guardando il cielo, perchè è là che siete stati ed è là che vorrete tornare." (Leonardo da Vinci)

Mario Mario Mario….what a warrior.. no one had a greater will to live.  While we all weep today for the son, brother, uncle, nephew, godson or friend we have lost, we must remember and celebrate the man who fought so valiantly against the monster of cancer that eventually claimed his life.  I know Mario will live on in spirit in all of us. Still as Nancy put it so well… I can’t imagine a world without Mario in it.
Today is our chance to say "thank you" for the way Mario brightened our lives, even though God granted him but half a life. We will all feel cheated, always, that he was taken from us so soon and yet we must be grateful that he was such a shining star in our lives. Now that he is gone we truly appreciate what we are now without and we want you to know, Mario, that life without you can never be the same. We have all despaired at our loss and only the strength of the message you gave us through your extraordinary will to live has given us the strength to move forward.
 From his North End Waterfront condo, Mario could see the planes taking off from Logan Airport.  We all know how much Mario loved travel… so I believe Mario has now been promoted to a new job… Tour Director of the Universe.  He will be there for each of us to show us the way around when it’s our time to pass on to the next journey beyond this one.  Some of you may expect St Peter at the Gates of Heaven…. But I expect Mario to be there to guide me to the next life… hey they have the best food at Planet J or don’t miss the incredible animals at Planet W. Or maybe you want to go back to Earth sometime or just stay here where its always peaceful… You know he’ll know just how to market the afterlife journey too..  He’ll probably know how to speak Alien too.  All 418 dialects.
  Mario has made a specialty of surprising us all of his life.  Ma tells me that when he was a kid, she was a bit worried that he didn’t seem to have that many friends, he didn’t seem to need any, he was too busy studying.  But surprise…  it seems that once he went to Cornell, Mario made good friends… loyal friends that he kept for the rest of his life… and he did so everywhere he went.  He cherished his friends and was better than anyone I know at keeping in touch and making each friend feel special. And so many of those friends came through for him during this most challenging time… visiting from near and far, bringing him food, soup and smoothies, reminding him of how much he is loved.  On behalf of Mario, I can’t thank you enough for your constant support.  And Uncle Joe,  he went to every single doctor’s appointment, helping Mario understand and providing constant expertise and support, you gave Mario such comfort and understanding, your role in his battle is immeasurable.
When Paul first introduced me to his family (yes in 1978) all I heard about was Mario this and Mario that.  It was clear that his parents were immensely proud of their son who was studying in Italy at the time.  Yes Mario was our real Italian Prince .  He went to school for so long, we thought he’d never get a job, but surprise…. Who knew he would grow up to fulfill all his dreams of working and living all over the world.
 While his life was way too short,  when Mario learned he had pancreatic cancer five years ago… he told me not an hour later when I was driving him home.. that at least he had done all the things he wanted to and had led a good life…  how many of us can say that?   Statistics told us that he had six months to live..  but once again, surprise… he had five years…. What doctors told us they never seen before in a Stage 4 patient.  And not surprisingly Mario made the best of his time, traveling when he could, working when he could and being with his friends and family when he wasn’t working or traveling.  Or maybe I should say he worked and travelled with his friends and family.  I have to again Thank Dr. Jill Allen, his oncologist at Mass General, and her team.. their care and expertise played a huge role in giving Mario such time.  Mario didn’t just do chemo and radiation and surgery though… he believed in many alternatives… His faith in God, acupuncture, banging and especially steam baths all contributed to his longevity.  But I think the most important was his extraordinary will to live. How evilly ironic that what made Mario most unique was his brain.. his intelligence, his creativity, his ability to speak 5 languages and yet it was his brain that destroyed itself.
 Mario was a Phoenix, when you might think, well this is it…. He’d rise again. Most of you know that 2 years ago, Mario almost left us.  Doctors at Mass General took one look at his chart and were incredulous that we thought a man with stage 4 pancreatic cancer with PCP Pneumonia should be treated aggressively and might survive.  They must have thought we were in the land of Denial.  They even sent us grief councilors…  I told them… you don’t know Mario…. He can pull through this… and he walked out of the ICU… Phoenix rises again.  And in the end, though we knew what was coming, it still surprised us…that  this time the Phoenix rose beyond us and into the heavens.
Speaking of heaven…Mario was the best man at our wedding.  Though they were as different as Italy and America, Mario and Paul were as close as spaghetti and meatballs.  They always had each other’s back.  For 16 years growing up, they slept 3 feet apart from each other.  And in the last six weeks when Mario needed him the most, Paul was once again there every night, sleeping on the sofa this time, caring for his brother till the very end.  They might argue politics but their love for each other, their parents, sister, aunts and uncles and cousins and especially for my son Will, can never be argued.  
Of all the things that made Mario special to me… by far the most outstanding, is his role as Zio Mario, Will’s Godfather.  He was about the best Godfather you could hope for.  He and Will had such plans, plans to travel to China and other adventures that Will must now carry on without him.  Mario leaves such a hole in Will’s life, in all our lives.  My only hope is that Mario’s will to live and his indominatable spirit will continue to guide him over the years.
Today, we give thanks for the life of a man I'm so proud to be able to call my brother: the unique, the determined, the extraordinary and irreplaceable Mario, may the Phoenix rise again in all of us.
And so I say arrivederci  Zio Mario… Happy Travels my brother.  We all love you and miss you already.